Green Bay In truth, general manager Ted Thompson and coach Mike McCarthy could hardly have hoped for any more from Aaron Rodgers after they mortgaged their futures by trading Brett Favre.

All Rodgers has done in Green Bay is post a passer rating of 97.2, placing him just ahead of Steve Young (96.8) as the National Football League's all-time efficiency leader.

Just as the Packers were Favre's team from 1992-2007, they now belong to Rodgers. Almost without skipping a beat, the Packers see it as making a simple and also stunning transition from one franchise quarterback to another.

Thompson had the foresight to stop Rodgers' plunge in the 2005 draft after 21 teams passed, McCarthy developed him and Rodgers proved more than ready after a three-year apprenticeship.

At 26 with five seasons remaining on a $63.53 million contract, Rodgers is in position to equal if not exceed Favre's all-time career achievements.

"I'm not comparing him to anybody else," offensive coordinator Joe Philbin said. "But there's nothing that tells me this guy can't be an excellent player for a long time. He's a very good quarterback with a great future."

In 2008, the Packers wanted to see a competent level of starter's play from Rodgers. They got it.

In 2009, they wanted Rodgers to start winning games in wake of 6-10 and get them back to the playoffs. They went 11-5, qualifying for the postseason as a wild card.

This year, they want Rodgers to bring the Lombardi Trophy back to Green Bay for the first time since the 1996 season.

Unrealistic, you say? Not according to some in the national media.

Two football writers from Sports Illustrated have placed the Packers atop their preseason power rankings. Pro Football Weekly did the same.

Closing with a rush, the Packers had a legitimate chance to win the Super Bowl last year. Then their defense fell apart in Arizona, Rodgers didn't play his game and was soundly outplayed by Kurt Warner, and the Packers were eliminated in overtime, 51-45.

In order to take the Packers to North Texas for the 45th Super Bowl, Rodgers will attempt to join the short list of quarterbacks who have won a Super Bowl without first having won a playoff game in a previous season. In the last 25 years, that list includes Jim McMahon in 1985, Jeff Hostetler in '90, Warner in '99, Tom Brady in 2001 and Eli Manning in '07.

Favre had four playoff victories notched on his belt before the Packers swept to the mountaintop in 1996.

"He certainly appears to be a young quarterback on the rise," a personnel director for an NFC team said. "He played with confidence to play in big games, but until they win a big game that question is always there."

Of Rodgers' 17 victories in 33 starts, counting the postseason, six came against teams that finished with winning records. Five of those games were played at Lambeau Field, and the sixth was in Arizona last January for the regular-season finale when the Cardinals mailed it in.

"There's been a lot of guys with talent," the personnel man said. "But when they get into big games they try to do too much. Aaron is not playoff-hardened yet."

Although Rodgers' deep-ball accuracy deserted him in the wild-card game on potential touchdown bombs of 80 and 73 yards to a wide-open Greg Jennings, he does rank as one of the most pinpoint long passers in the game.

Thanks to mechanical alterations to his delivery and weight-room diligence, Rodgers' arm is much stronger than it was even three or four years ago.

Surprisingly athletic, he beats perfect coverage about once a week by taking off and running for a first down.

"His arm is big-time," said Philbin. "He's a big guy. Big hands. Long arms. And his mobility is outstanding."

Rodgers also has a plan for every pass and almost never throws into traffic. Counting playoffs, his touchdown-to-interception ratio in his first two seasons as a starter is 62-21, whereas Favre was at 42-40 after his first two seasons in Green Bay.

"I like the fact he was the quarterback of an offense that had 15 giveaways last year," Philbin said. "He was 30-7 (touchdowns to interceptions). I mean, holy cow. Man, a four-to-one interception ratio is not too shabby."

The main chink in Rodgers' armor has been his tendency to hold the ball. One scout said that flaw was evident during Rodgers' career at the University of California. Then he was responsible for 9 1/2 of 34 sacks (27.9%) in 2008 and 16 1/2 of 55 (30%) last year.

By comparison, Favre was charged with only 12 of 73 sacks (16.4%) in his last four seasons as a Packer. In lieu of sacks, however, Favre sometimes would unload interceptions.

"There's sometimes where you wish he would have gotten rid of the ball a little quicker," said Philbin. "But there's a lot of plays on film where he does a lot of the same things and gets the ball away just before the rush gets there and makes a big play. You can't always have it both ways. I don't think he's got a huge issue of holding onto the ball."

As the personnel man pointed out, Rodgers has a rapid release when he makes up his mind to throw the ball. At times, Rodgers tends to become greedy looking for the big play down the field, but Philbin said he did a better job getting rid of it in the second half of 2009.

"He has a pretty good mastery of what we're doing," said Philbin. "I don't think he's a guy that gets surprised an awful lot. Certainly, he's only started 32, 33 games in his NFL career. There's some things we're looking for him doing better."

Backup Matt Flynn also has increased his arm strength, one of the short-comings that caused him to fall to the seventh round in 2008. Now his coaches think he can move and throw, and that he knows what he's doing.

Given the Packers' burgeoning faith in Flynn, who destroyed highly touted Brian Brohm in two training camps, there seems to be no organizational incentive to sign a veteran quarterback or even keep a third on the roster.

"I'm gaining confidence in him every day," Philbin said. "His command of the huddle is very good. His decision-making is good. His arm is not as good as Aaron's today but it's improving.

"He's kind of a regular guy that you like to see do well. He's got a bounce in his step when he's in there. Example is the No. 1 criteria for leadership, and he sets a good example on the field. He's got a lot of juice, and he's got ability."